Kymco I-One test: an electric scooter that only does it

How much are you ready to spend on buying an electric scooter? This is the basic question that you can ask before you start looking for the ideal two wheels. For Kymco, this amount is high. Very high. Too high. The I-One scooter problem is that it is full of qualities. But after a week of testing, it is difficult to ignore two elephants in the room: the price of the model and its poor autonomy.

In short: Why are we on Kymco i-one gave 6/10

When the kiss came

It’s not lucky. If Numerama tested IO a few weeks later, some problems would not be unnoticed. However, if you try a product that does not work all the time as it should, it is not possible to mention it to our readers.

In March we rolled around sixty kilometers with Kymco I-One. At this distance, a third of the snail was traveled. The problem is visibly running according to the brand when it is cold. Paris time at the beginning of March was not ideal, but it was not unusual temperatures: it was necessary to count between 3 and 10 ° C depending on the days. Or a degree that we are used to feeling for several months in a row in France.

When the i-one is cold, there will be two things.

• The first is A drastic decline in autonomyAlready very low basic. While the battery showed 100 %, the electric scooter assured us to keep 24 km. There are fewer than some way to go to work and return to your home in the evening.

• The second is Acceleration too limited. When you activate the handle, everything is up to 20 km/h, then the device suddenly catches. Variations, besides being frustrating, have something dangerous: we think we will fly to green light, the cars accelerate behind us … and suddenly the scooter slows down (without braking). Impossible for vehicles that feel close to quickly adjust speed: caught on surprise, some of them did not get into it.

The observation is all the frustrating when we help in comparison with the normal behavior of the scooter as soon as time is softened. With its 3.6 kW engine, the i-one is at the top of 50cc equivalent baskets (some are doing, for example, with only 2000 W). These qualities allow him to ensure live acceleration and beautiful sensitivity.

Undeniable properties

In itself, when it works, I-One offers great performances that combine with a fine template (but not too much) and excellent handling. It is an ideal city drive partner; It is comfortable (the saddle is not too high), the handles are reactive (brakes are close enough to the controls, for small hands, it is welcome), its lightness is happiness (84 kg without batteries). Likewise, its easy use can be tempted by those who do not need many frills: the strict minimum is enough.

More cosmetic chests of drawers than anything else

However, one wonders: Is there one or more ways of behavior on the I-One in Kymco? Our colleagues responded positively in 2022, as well as the official brand website. However, on the model we tested at the beginning of 2023, the “Fashion” button did not allow switch from one mode to another. Even more comical, the button was really used … not much. Like most Komodo chests of drawers, but only made it possible to change certain numbers on the screen. We feel these buttons come from a mold randomized And that they could be used to activate other functions. Kymco i-one just has nothing to offer.

Note that after a week of testing, the I-One dashboard suddenly displays green light, overlooked by the words “Eco mode”. Impossible to know how he started, could not remove it … eventually disappeared after we interrupted the contact and restarted.

We want more autonomy for this price!

As we said in the introduction, autonomy should be reviewed, whether you are the average room temperature of the area where you are. 24 km per 100 %loaded battery, it’s just ridiculous. It is undeniable that the battery suffers in winter, but usually decreases by 10 % of autonomy, not almost 50 %.

However, when it is a little warmer outside, the scooter displays a range of 38 km, which has a much more direction for equivalent 50cc, with battery (50.82V/34.3Ah/1,743Wh) 10 kg. However, this number remains too low for an electric two -wheel sold with a single battery.

If you want to add a second – and it is almost necessary – you will have to pay the price, approximately 800 euros. Kymco, unconnected 50 equivalent (no application and simplifying control panel), is located at the price of 125 good equivalent-strips 5000 or NIU NGT EVO.

This is all the more damage that Kymco offers one of the simplest and practical battery systems. These are batteries that we do not have to connect and disconnect: they lean on the base and download without problems.

It is a system that we have already experienced a few years ago on self -service scooters (Gogoro brand), but also preferred Zeway startup, which offers scooters with replaceable batteries.

If you want to improve the full kymco set, you will need to add 300 euros per charging base at home that allows the batteries to load without the incident. Numerama often repeated this: this is the nerve of war: simplifying the recharge experience is essential for addressing a large audience that holds this step in driving an electric vehicle.

KYMCO I-ONE Technical Sheet